Chair's report: Elizabeth Fisher

Parallel Session 2 (Chancellor’s 2)

Chair: Elizabeth Fisher (University of Oxford)

Both these sessions were run in a participatory format. Discussion in both was lively and thoughtful.

What is ‘research-led’ teaching in the context of the undergraduate law curriculum?

Dr Helen Carr and Nick Dearden discussed a project that were embarking on concerning the idea of ‘research led teaching’. At this early stage in their research they were suggesting that the concept was a vehicular one that could embrace many different ideas. The multi-definitional nature of the concept was very much clear from the wide ranging discussion among participants. Topics touched upon included what was understood as research, what the exact relationship between teaching and research for those at different institutions is, and how the concept of research led teaching operates in wider university structures. The discussion revealed the concept to be deeply complex and requiring far greater scrutiny. Carr & Dearden’s project is thus a really exciting one.

Education for sustainable development: how can we fit it into the law curriculum?

Dr Hazel Dawe discussed in a participatory format what the concept of sustainable development is understood to be in the university teaching context. This discussion then evolved into one concerning how the concept might be integrated into a law faculty and the wider university curriculum. Issues highlighted in discussion were the breadth of integration across different subjects and the need for real integration. A distinction was made between informal and formal curriculum and the experiences of the University of Bradford and Oxford Brookes University were both discussed.

Last Modified: 24 February 2011